Austin Transportation & Roadways

[Longhorn Al 440]

The thread to discuss new road construction projects and complain about traffic.

[skipperj 377]

Mopac sucks.

 But, they do seem to be moving at a pretty good pace down in the Slaughter section.

[Yarbr 123]

I feel like 2018 is the year things get better.

[Longhorn Al 440]

Edit: Incorrect information

Edited July 22, 2018 by Longhorn Al

[CrownKing 55]

I just don't understand how the new Mopac toll lane southbound in the afternoon can be stop and go entering, but magically clears up just as the main lanes start backing up. It just don't make no sense!

[Idoit 0]

Shit’s fucked, yo

[atomheartbevo 89355]

I think there are one or more Shagsters whatever posting in this thread.  Curious if anybody can confirm/verify some of this stuff.  Too much to post, but I'll throw in a few quotes.

Quote

Here is the dirt: CH2M is a shoddy contractor that hired unqualified subs to do the project. The main sub (Lane construction, Waco, TX.) performed such horrible installs they were fired from the project all together. 

New subs have been hard to find because of the amount of repair that needs to be done before new install can continue. 

Whoever hired CH2M should be replaced. 

I was a whistleblower on this very thing 2years ago. I was interviewed by a local tv station but the segment never aired.

The entire project is ripe with fraud, waste and abuse.

Quote

The drilled piers are fucked ie: wrong elevation, missing rebar, etc. It was a fucking clown show. The panels are correct. Lane construction had a group of dimwits managing the pier construction. I would do GPS layout and the dimwits routinely moved them for odd reasons. I submitted my resignation after a month and promptly contacted media.

 

[Longhorn Al 440]

http://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/area-under-ben-white-blvd-will-be-transformed-into-transit-center/1185252793

 

Area under Ben White between Manchaca and Pack Saddle Pass to be a transit hub with 200 park and ride spaces.

[Pasken 1309]

For those of us with family in Houston, another traffic light between Austin and Houston bit the dust. The light next to Bucky's in Bastrop is now a bridge. There are 4 more bridges to go on the project and most of them are near Austin. I remember making the drive back to school after a holiday before the bridges in bastrop and when they were still building Ben White in south east Austin...ugh. 

 

[clapclapclap 9000]

5 stoplights remaining between 130 and west of Bastrop,  at Ross Rd (overpass supposed to open 2021), Kellam Rd (2021), CR 214 (2022), CR 241 (2022), and FM 1209 (2021?)

And I found this while confirming that:

https://www.google.com/maps/@30.1875638,-97.5631987,3a,72.7y,359.99h,58.64t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sEgTuQUzmx9T6agBBPCfCpQ!2e0?hl=en

Edited May 18, 2018 by clapclapclap

[Celery Man 20871]

1 hour ago, Pasken said:

For those of us with family in Houston, another traffic light between Austin and Houston bit the dust. The light next to Bucky's in Bastrop is now a bridge. There are 4 more bridges to go on the project and most of them are near Austin. I remember making the drive back to school after a holiday before the bridges in bastrop and when they were still building Ben White in south east Austin...ugh. 

 

oh man that's great

[Yarbr 123]

Need to build a giant bridge over Giddings. I remember during the Ike evacuation Giddings wouldn't alter any traffic patterns to handle the mass exadous of Houston. Asshole move, so fuck them.

[bolverk 29356]

18 hours ago, Pasken said:

For those of us with family in Houston, another traffic light between Austin and Houston bit the dust. The light next to Bucky's in Bastrop is now a bridge. There are 4 more bridges to go on the project and most of them are near Austin. I remember making the drive back to school after a holiday before the bridges in bastrop and when they were still building Ben White in south east Austin...ugh. 

 

Now, if only we could get rid of the left-lane homesteaders...

[phdhorn 6224]

21 hours ago, Pasken said:

For those of us with family in Houston, another traffic light between Austin and Houston bit the dust. The light next to Bucky's in Bastrop is now a bridge. There are 4 more bridges to go on the project and most of them are near Austin. I remember making the drive back to school after a holiday before the bridges in bastrop and when they were still building Ben White in south east Austin...ugh. 

 

Yes of course, as they're cleaning up almost every traffic light on 71 from Brady down to the coast and making it a real highway, they're doing the opposite in Bee Cave.  There's already been about eight stop lights put in within a 2 mile stretch - and more coming. It might be the only place on the entire stretch of 71 where they're slowing things down and making it a clusterfuck.  Bee Cave is now the anal plug of Highway 71.

[skipperj 377]

Sounds like 281 north of 1604.

[elfenix 34165]

For those of us with family in Houston, another traffic light between Austin and Houston bit the dust. The light next to Bucky's in Bastrop is now a bridge. There are 4 more bridges to go on the project and most of them are near Austin. I remember making the drive back to school after a holiday before the bridges in bastrop and when they were still building Ben White in south east Austin...ugh. 

 

Bastrop can put up lights faster and cheaper than txdot can build overpasses. I expect 3 more on Monday.

 

[Godzillatron 292]

I think there are one or more Shagsters whatever posting in this thread.  Curious if anybody can confirm/verify some of this stuff.  Too much to post, but I'll throw in a few quotes.

Here is the dirt: CH2M is a shoddy contractor that hired unqualified subs to do the project. The main sub (Lane construction, Waco, TX.) performed such horrible installs they were fired from the project all together. 

New subs have been hard to find because of the amount of repair that needs to be done before new install can continue. 

Whoever hired CH2M should be replaced. 

I was a whistleblower on this very thing 2years ago. I was interviewed by a local tv station but the segment never aired.

The entire project is ripe with fraud, waste and abuse.

The drilled piers are fucked ie: wrong elevation, missing rebar, etc. It was a fucking clown show. The panels are correct. Lane construction had a group of dimwits managing the pier construction. I would do GPS layout and the dimwits routinely moved them for odd reasons. I submitted my resignation after a month and promptly contacted media.

 


Thread sounds like the usual Austin bitching. MoPAC construction was horribly mismanaged by CH2M. CTRMA probably should have defaulted them but didn’t. Lane was brought on to finish the job, and has been largely responsible for getting the road open and fixing the stuff CH2M screwed up. The sound walls were designed incorrectly to handle structural load and are being replaced (pretty quickly in my opinion).


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Longhorn Al 440]

Mopac South project is well underway.  2 new Mopac lanes in each direction will go under Slaughter and La Crosse.  Diverging Diamond will be used at Slaughter.  New landscaping to go in once it's done.

 

 

 

Edited July 22, 2018 by Longhorn Al

[skipperj 377]

And they are building the fuck out of it. Progress is very impressive.

[Longhorn Al 440]

SH 45SW

 

[Chet Steadman 940]

On 5/19/2018 at 9:46 AM, Godzillatron said:

 


Thread sounds like the usual Austin bitching. MoPAC construction was horribly mismanaged by CH2M. CTRMA probably should have defaulted them but didn’t. Lane was brought on to finish the job, and has been largely responsible for getting the road open and fixing the stuff CH2M screwed up. The sound walls were designed incorrectly to handle structural load and are being replaced (pretty quickly in my opinion).


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Pretty quickly?  Have they not been replacing the walls for almost a year now?  

The replacement soundwalls at Spicewood have been leaning against the piers waiting for installation for eight months.  

I live near Mabry and I haven’t seen anyone working since Memorial Day.  

Edited July 22, 2018 by Chet Steadman

[Guest Lobo]

They're expediting it with the hopes that people think it was part of the 2016 Mobility Project.  

[The People’s Elbow 707]

Do Beetlejuice rules apply? If so:

 

M1ke! M1ke! M1ke!

[Larry T. Spider 1740]

Incredible amount of construction on 183 heading out towards the airport. Will be great when that’s complete in 2030.

[Guest Lobo]

2 minutes ago, Larry T. Spider said:

Incredible amount of construction on 183 heading out towards the airport. Will be great when that’s complete in 2030.

Right in time for another light rail proposal out there, 6 more taxpayer funded parking garages, and another set of lane closures.  But hey, there's a Mr. Gatti's!  

[Pasken 1309]

On 7/21/2018 at 10:55 PM, Larry T. Spider said:

Incredible amount of construction on 183 heading out towards the airport. Will be great when that’s complete in 2030.

They were making good progress but I would be concerned about the working storage that the ATX metro area is having. The toll agency is doing a good job tracking how much money and workers are on the job as it's going on which will give them earlier warning signs for delays but that is what I think the danger is with this job. There is still a ton of work to do on 71 since those 1/4 mile of those mainlanes are being completely rebuilt. The northern section from MLK to Manor is suppose to be done next summer and the southern section is suppose to be done in 2020 but I could see that being delayed if they can't get enough workers. 

[Steamboat1874 4030]

On 7/21/2018 at 7:20 PM, Longhorn Al said:

Mopac South project is well underway.  2 new Mopac lanes in each direction will go under Slaughter and La Crosse.  Diverging Diamond will be used at Slaughter.  New landscaping to go in once it's done.

 

 

 

They did the Diverging Diamond thing at 1431 and IH35 near Ikea and it fucking sucks mother fucking ass.

No more right on red in any direction so you sit there for 3 or 4 minutes (it seems that long) when there is not a car in sight.

Oh and now westbound 1431 backs up for over a mile at that intersection.

Complete clusterfuck.  

[skipperj 377]

At least some of the right turns have dedicated lanes and no lights in this version.

 

[Longhorn Al 440]

1 hour ago, Steamboat1874 said:

They did the Diverging Diamond thing at 1431 and IH35 near Ikea and it fucking sucks mother fucking ass.

No more right on red in any direction so you sit there for 3 or 4 minutes (it seems that long) when there is not a car in sight.

Oh and now westbound 1431 backs up for over a mile at that intersection.

Complete clusterfuck.  

It won't need right turn on red. Each direction has yield lanes to the right before you get to the light.  I don't know how it is at the one you mentioned by IKEA.

[Steamboat1874 4030]

13 hours ago, Longhorn Al said:

It won't need right turn on red. Each direction has yield lanes to the right before you get to the light.  I don't know how it is at the one you mentioned by IKEA.

At the 1431 and 35 intersection there is a curving lane to go right but instead of a yield sign there is now a traffic light that you cannot turn right on red on. If you are going north or south on the service road and want access to 1431 you cannot turn right on red.

Just like in that top photo. That photo shows two directions without a light and two with a light. You will not be able to turn right on red at either of those lights.

But that is not the issue......that intersection takes at least 2 to 3 times longer to get through than it did before. The back up on westbound 1431 to cross over 35 backs up at least a mile even during non-peak hours. It sucks. I avoid it at all cost.

[FondrenRoad 4378]

On 7/21/2018 at 8:20 PM, Longhorn Al said:

Mopac South project is well underway.  2 new Mopac lanes in each direction will go under Slaughter and La Crosse.  Diverging Diamond will be used at Slaughter.  New landscaping to go in once it's done.

 

 

 

It's that top one actually more efficient? Looks like a clusterfuck with all Slaughter traffic lanes crossing each other at a stop light twice. 

[clapclapclap 9000]

1 hour ago, Steamboat1874 said:

At the 1431 and 35 intersection there is a curving lane to go right but instead of a yield sign there is now a traffic light that you cannot turn right on red on. If you are going north or south on the service road and want access to 1431 you cannot turn right on red.

 

Only an issue southbound from I-35.  Northbound you can simply turn right on University Oak Blvd to get around that light.  Take a look at a map.

But yeah, a lot of that area is poorly designed, not enough capacity for everything they crammed in there and too many choke points.  Round Rock should have required more of a grid of streets.

[Steamboat1874 4030]

2 minutes ago, clapclapclap said:

 

Only an issue southbound from I-35.  Northbound you can simply turn right on University Oak Blvd to get around that light.  Take a look at a map.

But yeah, a lot of that area is poorly designed, not enough capacity for everything they crammed in there and too many choke points.  Round Rock should have required more of a grid of streets.

Yes you can do that but then you are dealing basically with a multiple shopping center nightmare with a bunch of stop signs and women driving 8 MPH.

That intersection worked fine until they fucked it up.

It sucks ass now.

[bschoolprof 6232]

1 hour ago, Steamboat1874 said:

Yes you can do that but then you are dealing basically with a multiple shopping center nightmare with a bunch of stop signs and women driving 8 MPH.

That intersection worked fine until they fucked it up.

It sucks ass now.

Have to agree with this.  The intersection is now worse and needlessly more complicated by this diamond fuckery.  Thanks a lot guys.  

[Armybrat 40678]

Drove through that intersection several days ago. Ya better plan ahead which lane yer gonna merge into to get where you're going, or you could be fooked.

I avoid that part of Round Rock as much as possible.

Edited July 25, 2018 by Armybrat

[Pasken 1309]

They are designing free frontage lanes to be built along the 183 north toll lanes. Oil is having a better year so there is going to be more highway money and hopefully that can cover these lanes and ALL of the Oak Hill project but I'm going to bet they only build the frontage lanes at Oak Hill and wait another 5-10 years to build the mainlanes when they have the money. It might depend on what the eventual plan is for 35 which was kicked back to the drawing board last year. 

Edited July 25, 2018 by Pasken

[atomheartbevo 89355]

So with all of these electric scooters popping up all over Austin, when do we get dedicated scooter lanes?

[Uncle Nate 2097]

19 hours ago, Armybrat said:

Drove through that intersection several days ago. Ya better plan ahead which lane yer gonna merge into to get where you're going, or you could be fooked.

I avoid that part of Round Rock as much as possible.

I was heading east on 1431 through that intersection one night, in the dark and slight fog, and the car in front of me veered right and I, being the out-of-towner, followed him.  Fucker put me in the oncoming traffic lanes (luckily there was no oncoming traffic at the time).

 

[gsoda3 3233]

Probably didn't have room, but dedicated u turn and right turn lanes with roundabouts is the answer at 35 and 1431.

[Longhorn Al 440]

Finally seeing some demolition...

https://communityimpact.com/austin/southwest-austin/top-stories/2018/07/25/i-35-main-lane-and-william-cannon-overpass-closures-scheduled-for-friday-and-saturday-nights/

Quote

The Texas Department of Transportation announced Tuesday it will be closing I-35 main lanes near William Cannon Drive both Friday and Saturday nights in order to demolish the south side of the old William Cannon overpass.

Quote

U-turn bridges at Stassney Lane, which have also been under construction as part of the project, will officially open Thursday in anticipation of the weekend closures.

 

Edited July 26, 2018 by Longhorn Al

[utee94 15742]

Diverging Diamond ? That's what that shit show at 1431 and I35 is called?  Man I hate that intersection now.

[phdhorn 6224]

28 minutes ago, utee94 said:

Diverging Diamond ?

Great name for a stripper bar.

[Neonmoon 38127]

Is this the thread where we discuss the self driving bus overlords coming to Austin or no?

[Machinator 32097]

43 minutes ago, Neonmoon said:

Is this the thread where we discuss the self driving bus overlords coming to Austin or no?

Talking about this?

 

[atomheartbevo 89355]

When do we get self-driving electric scooters?

[bmbmd 1027]

I haven't been down to Austin for a couple of years, but went this weekend to watch granddaughter swim in the TAGS championship.  (no medals-one fifth, ninth in 50-fly thanks for asking).  My god- I-35 is a death trap.  Why in the actual fuck do they have seventy miles torn up at once?  I sincerely hope there is a memorial somewhere to all the lives lost in this fuster-cluck.  

[PilotsError 2281]

AUSTIN (KXAN) — Two U.S. senators are calling on the Federal Trade Commission to investigate the contractor responsible for tollway billing problems in Texas and several other states.

Senators Bill Nelson, D-Florida, and Gary Peters, D-Michigan, sent a letter to the Federal Trade Commission Monday, asking the agency to investigate Conduent State & Local Solutions, citing problems with toll operations, which KXAN first reported last fall.

In recent years, the company has come under scrutiny for its handling of such systems in Texas, Florida, Michigan, California, New York, New Hampshire and Maryland. Conduent has been accused of billing customers for inaccurate toll charges, late fees and penalties. 

"Conduent’s pattern of mismanaging cashless toll systems is deeply troubling and warrants further scrutiny,” the senators wrote.  “If drivers are being hurt financially, the FTC should hold the company accountable and prevent it from doing further harm.”

Locally, the Texas Department of Transportation says it has "repeatedly held Conduent responsible for not meeting metrics," charging them over $2.4 million since November 2014.

Conduent shared a statement with KXAN regarding allegations of poor performance when it comes to toll operations. Although they referred us to TxDOT when it comes to toll operations in Texas, the company did say it is committed to good customer service and operations.

"Confidentiality agreements with our government clients prevent us from publicly commenting on these particular issues," according to the statement. "However, we can say that we are an industry leader in the automated tolling space across the United States and we believe that we serve our government clients, and the motorists using toll bridges and roadways, very well."

• RELATED: What customers should expect with TxDOT toll billing changes

TxDOT recently renewed its multi-million dollar contract with Conduent for a 2-year term, starting July 1, 2018, through June 30, 2020. The initial contract, nearly $100 million in value, was set to expire after a five-year term when TxDOT signed the new agreement last month.

"(TxDOT) is in the process of purchasing software that will be specifically tailored to run our TxTag system," according to a statement from TxDOT. "Due to the fact this software development will take some time, we had to extend our contract with Conduent for two years."

Despite renewing its contract, TxDOT could be reevaluating parts of its toll operations centered around customer service. In December, TxDOT issued a Request For Information, seeking “industry comment on the proposed scope of work for a Customer Service Center supporting the agency's toll operations.”

Rep. Tony Dale, R-Cedar Park, who has multiple toll roads in his Central Texas district, said TxDOT should look into other vendors for its toll operations and replace Conduent.

"I welcome an FTC investigation of Conduent, the TxTAG back office vendor," Dale said in a statement to KXAN. "I suspect the FTC will find what many Texas drivers already know, namely that customer service and accuracy in billing is sorely lacking." 

In recent months, TxDOT has assessed more than $312,000 in liquidated damages directly related to Conduent’s performance when it comes to managing toll operations, according to information obtained through an open records request. The damages, noted on invoices from November 2017 through March of this year, indicate problems with customer accounts being replenished, statement generation and delivery, call center answer times, and Pay by Mail image review completion.

TxDOT also just recently accepted a $300,000 settlement offer from Conduent for loss of revenue after issues in early 2016 where statement generation errors “were not cleared quickly enough for customers to be billed, resulting in unbilled transactions.” 

As a result of Conduent's operations in Florida, lawmakers there have called on the state to reevaluate its contract with the vendor. Earlier this month, the Florida Department of Transportation said it would suspend payments to the contractor after "the company botched a $287 million upgrade of the state’s SunPass toll system," and failed to process millions of customer transactions, according to the letter.

Florida state lawmakers have also brought up Conduent in Texas, including a KXAN report from earlier this year about a woman whose toll bill skyrocketed to $41,000 after being sent to collections.

“Why would we award a contract to a company that has issues in eight different states, a woman with a $41,000 bill from the same company in Texas," Florida State Rep. Janet Cruz, D-Tampa, told KXAN's sister station WFLA. "That is ridiculous and that is going to happen to more Floridians.”

In Texas, Conduent subcontracted with Houston-based law firm Perdue Brandon Fielder Collins & Mott to collect delinquent tolls. In March, TxDOT dropped the collections agency and Conduent began handling all of its toll collection operations. TxDOT also implemented a new law capping administrative fees for delinquent toll drivers at $48 a year.

Still, senators are calling Conduent's mismanagement "unfair" under the FTC Act, which "prohibits conduct that causes or is likely to cause substantial harm, is not reasonably avoidable by consumers, and is not outweighed by any countervailing benefits to consumers or to competition."

"We recognize that Conduent is a third-party vendor that conducts work on behalf of state DOTs pursuant to contractual obligations and, as such, those state DOTs are responsible for addressing harm to their citizens," according to the senators letter. "However, we also believe there is a role for the FTC given Conduent’s practices have directly burdened consumers with onerous toll charges and, consequently, directly and negatively impacted their financial well-being."

 

https://www.kxan.com/news/investigations/ftc-may-investigate-txdot-s-toll-contractor-amid-problems-nationwide/1334732695

[Pasken 1309]

On 7/29/2018 at 8:09 PM, bmbmd said:

I haven't been down to Austin for a couple of years, but went this weekend to watch granddaughter swim in the TAGS championship.  (no medals-one fifth, ninth in 50-fly thanks for asking).  My god- I-35 is a death trap.  Why in the actual fuck do they have seventy miles torn up at once?  I sincerely hope there is a memorial somewhere to all the lives lost in this fuster-cluck.  

 

Very little of 35 is being torn up in Austin. They are doing work on overpasses at St Johns, Stassney, Oltorf, 51st, William Cannon and 183 with some good adjustments to the entrances/exits but Austin doesn't have any significant 35 reworking on the schedule. 

[skipperj 377]

He's talking about I-35 north of Jarrell. It sucks.

 

http://maps.dot.state.tx.us/My35Map/?Location=Cen

Edited July 31, 2018 by skipperj

[Longhorn Al 440]

William Cannon bridge is completely gone.